On Thursday 23rd May, 33 Year 8 students and four staff excitedly made their way to the Costa Brava for a football tour. Travel was smooth and with a ripple of applause on landing we were in sunny Spain. On arrival at the hotel in Platja d’Aro we had time to enjoy an evening meal and settle into our rooms, fuelling up and resting before our first fixtures the next day.
The next morning, we were up and out early to visit the Nou Camp, home to FC Barcelona. As the ground is currently under reconstruction we enjoyed a tour of the museum, admiring the club’s memorabilia and silverware, and spent far too much time and money in the three-story gift shop! After purchases were made there was time to visit Barcelona city centre and enjoy some local culture. Students were given free time to explore the Las Ramblas area and see some of the incredible architecture.
It was then onto the serious business of playing football. The girls’ team under the stewardship of Ms Manzi were playing CE Llerona, and dominated play, scoring some excellent goals, winning 8-1. With Mr Ricketts and Mr Langley at the helm, the two boys’ teams played CF Parets and put together some great passages of play. The teams walked away with a 3-2 win and a 0-3 loss. Team cohesion and tour ethos were definitely coming together on the trip.
After a busy day it was time for a rest and a chance to have fun at Spain’s biggest theme park, PortAventura. There wasn’t much rest as students raced around trying out the different rollercoasters and cooling off on the water rides; but it certainly was one of the highlights of the trip. After dinner we walked to the local mini golf course and enjoyed the opportunity to relax and build on the friendships that were being made.
The next day it was back to more football, but before kick-off we enjoyed a morning of beach activities. The students couldn’t stop playing sport, with beach volleyball, frisbee, football and swimming all taking place. It was fantastic to see the students and staff getting on so well and maximising the opportunities to spend time together.
It was then time for Manzi United, Ricketts Rangers and Langley Orient to face CF La Roca. The opposition teams and local facilities were fantastic and great for us to see how sport plays such an integral part of the local Spanish community. Results were hard fought against good opposition; 3-4 loss, 8-2 win and 0-3 loss. Then a well-deserved dip in the pool on return to the hotel was a chance for everyone to have fun and unwind, as we couldn’t believe it was our last night already. Obviously, we made time for some more sports with an evening of ten pin bowling and free time in the arcade, playing air hockey, table football and basketball hoops.
On the return journey students were eagle eyed and spotted former professional footballer Adebayo Akinfenwa ahead of them in the passport control queue. Enjoying a group photo was a great way to end the trip on a high. A huge thank you to Ms Potter, Mr Langley, Ms Manzi and Mr Ricketts who accompanied the students on the tour.
